Whimsical Jewelry Holds Real Flowers and Crystals Inside

Irish designer Kay Bells lets you wear tiny terrariums and pieces from the natural world like fresh flowers and crystals in her jewelry. Sold in an Etsy store called Ruby Robin Boutique, the pieces are the perfect accessories for spring. Bells's collection includes a plethora of different designs, like flower petals encased in water, moss inside shadow boxes, and dried flowers in vials. The jewelry maker is always on the hunt to find more bits of nature to fit inside glass cases, rings, and bracelets.

"My hand-crafted jewelery is designed to allow the quiet beauty of nature to shine, to stir the imagination, inspire wonder in small things and encapsulate a microcosm of forgotten memories," Bells writes on her Etsy page.

Bells is also open to commission and can make jewelry out of small keepsakes. She suggests things like bridal lace, a flower from a bouquet, or even a strand of hair. She also sells wholesale for big group events or parties.

Between steep fares and crowded terminals, flying during the holidays isn’t fun. But on Friday, December 15, a special Alaska Airlines promotion will ease boarding stress and transform packed planes into mile-high ugly sweater parties, in honor of National Ugly Christmas Sweater Day. As the Los Angeles Times reports, the airline will offer free early boarding to travelers willing to don their holiday worst at the airport.

The promotion is good for all Alaska Airlines flights in the airline’s 115-city network, and for flights offered by Virgin America and Horizon Air (both of which are operated by Alaska Airlines). In addition to escaping the waiting crowds, passengers who share the most festive knitted looks will be featured on Alaska Air's social media pages if they tag their photos and videos using the hashtags #UglySweaterDay and #MostWestCoast. And since no plane aisle-turned-catwalk is complete without a soundtrack, “festive holiday-themed boarding music will play all month long to help get guests into the holiday spirit,” according to a press release.

Worried you’ll be the only person on the plane wearing a sequined Rudolph cardigan? Even if other passengers don’t get the memo, airline crew will also be wearing ugly sweaters—so feel free to unleash your inner Chevy Chase from National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.

For those of you aspiring to be the worst dressed person at your family's holiday dinner, UglyChristmasSweater.com sells—you guessed it—ugly Christmas sweaters to seasonal revelers possessing a sense of irony. But the Michigan-based online retailer has elevated kitsch to new heights by offering a create-your-own-sweater tool on its website.

Simply visit the site's homepage, and click on the Sweater Customizer link. There, you'll be provided with a basic sweater template, which you can decorate with festive snowflakes, reindeer, and other designs in five different colors. If you're feeling really creative, you can even upload photos, logos, hand-drawn pictures, and/or text. After you approve and purchase a mock-up of the final design, you can purchase the final result (prices start at under $70). But you'd better act quickly: due to high demand, orders will take about two weeks plus shipping time to arrive.